Everyone…. even my 12 year old brother has a blog or vlog nowadays! This means it is harder than ever for your content to stand out. Whilst even a 12 year old can write a blog post, creating an effective blog post as a marketing communication requires a little more strategic thinking. Here are a few tips for creating an effective blog post…..
An optimized blog post title will entice readers and help Google to index you. It is often best to start your draft with a post theme and create the title when the post is complete. You can use this title for social sharing. Remember the majority of people who interact with you on social media engage with your content on the immediate platform and will not click through to your original post.
The blog post should be broken into short sections of one or two paragraphs in each section and aim for 500 words in total, or if you are using a vlog get to the point within 90 to 180 seconds. You can use sub headings, bullet points, images or video to help break up the content.Use an attractive or interesting image to attract readers. Readers have short attention spans and will often scan content for the main point or summary.
Start your post with a cause or problem in which you can work to resolve throughout your piece. It is important to hook people in with their fears, worries or apprehensions and work to change their mind or opinion.
Educate your reader! Tell them something they don’t know and add value by telling stories. However be careful that you are telling relevant stories and not just offering anecdotes. This will help to build credit for your ideas and establish your cause.
Be the solution. Your product, services or ideas should be the solution to the initial concern or problem. This will help you to generate leads and benefit your sales process.
Finally summarize your post. What is the take away or lesson? You can ask your reader to take action at this point i.e. buy now, visit my website or add a comment. A blog will help you to build a community, so offer a subscription or follow function and encourage people to return or connect. Encourage people to share your post by adding a social share facility. (HINT HINT ?)
